Can someone explain how St Kevin's got seven 50s in English? How did they get so many perfect scores? Are the students immensely talented, or are the teachers/resources fantastic? Or is a combination of both?
That is something that has always interested me, because my school hasn't had a 50 in english in a few years now, so it is hard to ascertain what is required to achieve such a score. Why is it that some schools seem to excel in English, year after year?
st kevins DOES have nuts resources and one of their english teachers lectures tsfx and is really a top bloke (Y)
not only that but they do poach a few kids with their academic scholarships and when you mix talent + resources and a supportive environment you get 50s
of course it depends on the year too, some years, some schools, do a certain book and the way the teachers taught them meant that they were very well prepared for a certain prompt in section A and a certain type of article in section C and that sort of thing
resources arent the be all and end all though, a girl got 99.95 from braybrook college this year and believe me when i say that school does not have much in terms of resources. but a common argument that ive heard from friends at poorer schools, is that the really bright students get alot of attention of the teachers outside of class hours, and the teachers are happy to help someone who can do really well. by the time you get to year 12 alot of the poorer students drop out, go to vcal or VET, and many dont have particularly high ambitions. if you chuck a freak in there who chose not to go to a select entry or get a scholarship to a private school, you have a kid who could rank 1 every subject and the only thing holding back their SS is their exam score.
And some people would raise the issue of the learning environment in such schools, which is definitely a problem especially in lower years, but a few of my friends who have gone to poorer schools(with small vce cohorots) like braybrook and deer park actually almost revere the top kids, and often hold back saying "you know what sir, im just going to self study this, you go mark such and suchs practice sac", and from what i hear, the teachers enjoy having a passionate student or two in their classes
